Where the Wild Things Are
by Tabine
Summary: The romance of Cana Alberona and Bacchus Groh certainly was an unlikely one, and filled with its fair share of of magical hijinks, intense battles, powerful mages, carefully guarded secrets, loyal friends, and, of course, more drinks than the average person could ever fathom. Then again, perhaps it was just as well, because this story is anything but average in the slightest.
1. A Conflict of Interest

_This fanwork contains references to the use of alcohol and to certain mature situations. Viewer discretion is advised._

* * *

**Where the Wild Things Are**  
**Chapter One: A Conflict of Interest  
**

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Cana really did love Mirajane Strauss dearly — the older woman was the big sister she'd never had, and Mirajane, in turn, saw her as another darling younger sibling (albeit a bit _idiosyncratic_, when put politely, much like the rest of their fellow guild mates). Indeed, Cana couldn't count the number of times Mirajane had been there for her when she'd needed a shoulder to lean on, and words didn't even begin to describe how much Cana appreciated everything the older woman had ever done for her. They were family, after all. They were _nakama_.

Yet even so, these two young ladies had their spats and their differences, as all siblings did, and as Cana looked unhappily at the two men sitting before her in one of Crocus's most chic coffee shops, Cana resolved to personally see to it that Mirajane paid dearly for what she'd done.

Also, Cana really needed a stiff drink. Immediately.

She was abruptly torn from her murderous thoughts by yet another yelp of excitement from the blond man sitting to Cana's right. "So cool!" Jason exclaimed. "I can't believe this is really happening, they're just too cool — two of the strongest mages and heaviest drinkers in Fiore who can drink anyone dumb enough to challenge them under the table! How cool — !"

A loud bark of amused laughter from Cana's left interrupted the reporter. "_Almost_ anyone," said Bacchus Groh, the ace of Quattro Cerberus, and in an attempt to improve her mood, he grinned knowingly at Cana. "But in Nee-chan's defense, it's always close — it's enough to get my soul shaking just thinking about it!" His grin widened; Cana was not amused.

"I told you to stop calling me that," she muttered to him darkly before turning to face Jason properly. "Besides, you lost a couple of times, too." The reporter was bouncing excitedly in his seat, looking eagerly between the two like a child in a sweets store as he did so, and while she normally found Jason's enthusiasm flatteringly endearing, Cana now found that it was all she could do to not roll her eyes at him, and she had Mirajane and Bacchus and a severe lack of alcohol to thank for that. "Is this interview done yet? I'm a very busy woman, you know." Truthfully, she wasn't, relatively speaking, but at that moment Cana was willing to do or say anything she could to get away from Bacchus and his stupidly attractive face and ridiculously sculpted body and —

Oh, yes, she definitely had to leave. And perhaps figure out a way to deal with Mirajane in a way that wasn't _entirely_ illegal, once she got back to Magnolia, as well.

"I just have a few more questions for you if it's alright," Jason replied, "and then there's the photo shoot for the magazine after that, but Mirajane probably told you all about it already. She's just too cool, isn't she?" He continued to babble on about how "cool" the eldest Strauss sibling was, and while Bacchus seemed to be listening to the reporter with at least a vague sort of interest, Cana most certainly wasn't.

A _photo shoot_. With _Bacchus_. Cana wasn't sure whether she wanted to end Mirajane immediately or torture her for as long as possible upon returning to the guild, but as far as Cana was concerned, revenge was most certainly in order: it was bad enough that Mirajane had so conveniently forgotten to mention that she'd be interviewed alongside Bacchus when she first asked Cana to fill in as her replacement instead ("I already promised Lisanna and Elfman I'd go on a mission with them before _Sorcerer Weekly_ asked me for the interview, and I know for a fact that an interview with Gildarts Clive's only child would make headlines!") but the fact that she'd just as easily left out the part about doing a photo shoot with the Palm Mage from Quattro Cerberus was just _inhumane_.

But Cana was willing to let it go — they were _nakama_, after all, and for all her power and strength, Mirajane was human, too, albeit one whose personality could be demonically twisted at times. Besides, there was still one rather large detail about the entire situation that hadn't been brought up by anyone yet, for which Cana was extremely grateful. She trusted the older woman enough to keep it a secret, and so with a sigh of resignation Cana leaned back in her seat and looked pointedly at Jason, who was still rambling on about how cool Fairy Tail (and to a slightly lesser extent, Quattro Cerberus) was.

"Alright," she told the reporter. "Let's get this over with — what do you want to know?" Out of the corner of her eye, Cana saw Bacchus shift into a more comfortable position beside her, and she fought the urge to turn and stare in awe at those delicious muscles in motion. She had a point to make, and a reputation to maintain.

Jason's expression grew minutely more serious. "Cool, cool, _cool_!" he exclaimed yet again as he turned to face Cana directly, pen poised above his notepad in anticipation. "Cana, this question is for you."

"Alright. Shoot." Cana took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down; all the interviews and photo shoots with _Sorcerer Weekly_ she'd had in the past had been fine (even if they only served to ruin Fairy Tail's reputation even more) and even if she _had_ been conned into being interviewed alongside Bacchus, it really wasn't that bad at all. Even if she didn't care to admit exactly why that was.

"Our readers want to know: how long have you liked Bacchus? And when did you decide to date him?" The reporter looked at her expectantly, and when she didn't respond, his expression turned to one of confusion, and then fear upon catching a glimpse of the murderous gleam in her eyes. "Cana?" Bacchus, to his credit, had the decency to look away and remain silent, despite the flush coloring his face — Cana knew it was for her sake, Bacchus wasn't the sort of man to do that for just anyone — and if she hadn't been so mortified and embarrassed by the situation she would have thought that a blushing Bacchus was actually really adorable.

"I'm going to kill her," Cana said in a low voice to nobody in particular. "Mirajane Strauss is a _dead woman_."

And then Cana willingly severed the frayed threads holding the remains of her patience together, and officially lost it.

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**A/N:** And so I finally joined the _Fairy Tail_ fanfiction bandwagon by going back to my previous style of writing relatively short chapters — I'm really excited for the way this particular story will eventually play out (especially since I already have the next two chapters mostly written and edited) especially since I have a few other unrelated Baccana pieces I'm working on as well (I've recently discovered that I _really_ love this pairing quite a bit), so. Yes! Hopefully it will be alright.

That being said, feedback and reviews of any kind at all are always appreciated; thank you for reading this first chapter! Also, my apologies for how lame these notes are; not only do I not have much to say at the moment, since this is only the first chapter of the fic, but it's also late, here, and I am utterly braindead and exhausted. So, yes. Heh.


	2. Self-Indulgent Introspection

_This fanwork contains references to the use of alcohol and to certain mature situations. Viewer discretion is advised._

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**Where the Wild Things Are**  
**Chapter Two: Self-Indulgent Introspection  
**

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All told, the damage Cana did to the coffee shop in her fit of rage was little compared to what had been done to her pride and Fairy Tail's reputation. _And my wallet_, Cana thought glumly as she recalled the figure on the bill that would be sent to the guild as compensation for one of their members razing the establishment to the ground.

Looked like she'd be late paying her rent. _Again_.

Cana sighed and slowly turned the knob of the shower until the water trickled to a stop. It seemed like she owed a few other people apologies as well. Jason, for one, didn't seem to care when she'd muttered a sheepish apology to him as he was carried away by a team of medical mages — he'd been crowing about how cool Cana was as her magic, fuel by rage, wreaked havoc around them (it was only Bacchus pushing him out of the way of a rampaging Cana that had prevented the reporter from suffering from any serious injuries) — and when Cana had calmed down after discovering that there wasn't anymore of the coffee shop left to destroy, the proprietor of the establishment had accepted her apology much more cordially than she'd expected. Then again, it was difficult to gauge something like that when the other party was doing little more than staring in blank disbelief at the place where their business had stood mere minutes before, but all in all Cana thought it had all gone rather well.

Master Makarov would begrudgingly accept her apology, Cana knew, and would understand what had prompted her rampage in the first place, even if he'd be more ornery than usual about the whole thing. The bill for the coffee shop's reconstruction, as well as damages sustained by a few of the other shops in its immediate vicinity, was another matter entirely, but she knew he'd take that in stride as well; the knowledge did little to stave off the guilt eating away at her, however, and Cana resolved to take on as many jobs as it took to pay off that debt in its entirety.

She supposed Mirajane deserved an apology as well, if only because she really had kept Cana's personal and somewhat complicated opinions about Bacchus a secret. In typical Mirajane Strauss fashion, everything else had been a setup to get Cana and the Palm Mage together, as was usual for Fairy Tail's resident demon of a matchmaker. Her heart had been in the right place; she just hadn't gone about the _doing_ part properly. For that, Mirajane would have to apologize to _her_. And Bacchus.

_Bacchus Groh_. Cana shivered unintentionally. Now _there_ was a man who drove her wild. She shook her head, mentally berating herself for her choice in words as she stepped out of the small bathroom and into the equally small adjoined room of the hotel she was staying in during her stay in Crocus.

_Great_, Cana mused as she began pulling on her clothing. _Now I__'__m starting to sound like one of those idiotic and overgrown puppies._ Still, her mind wandered back to the Palm Mage, and once she finished getting dressed, Cana leaned back on the bed, lost in thought.

She'd be lying if she said she didn't find the older man attractive. In fact, if she were being completely honest, at least to herself, Cana would go so far as to admit that he was exactly her type: an older and powerful mage who knew how to hold his own regardless of whether he was on the field, at the counter of a bar or a seedy tavern, or (and here Cana found herself blushing profusely against her will) the bedroom. Bacchus obviously knew what he was doing, and the fact that he wasn't bad on the eyes at all certainly helped.

And it wasn't as if she loathed being around him, either. While it was true that their initial meeting had left much to be desired, it hadn't taken them long at all to resolve their personal issues and get closer to one another as drinking buddies, and not that much longer to get closer still as… "fuck buddies" was too crass a term even for Cana, and after a few moments of careful consideration she finally settled on "friends with benefits". It was hardly a fitting term, in her opinion, but it would have to do for now, and Cana brought one arm up to cover her eyes, groaning softly as her face grew warmer and her blush darkened as the memories of the first time she'd spent the night with Bacchus came back to her in explicit detail, followed soon thereafter by the second night, and then the third.

There certainly was no small amount of magic in those hands of his, that was for certain.

Four months had passed since their relationship — if it could even be considered that — first began, and while it was common knowledge to the members of Fairy Tail and anyone associated with the guild that their own Cana Alberona had become incredibly chummy with one of Goldmine's easily excited puppies (Jason's question, in fact, really had been an innocent one based on the fact that the two had been seen together so frequently in the last few months, and Cana resolved to take the reporter out drinking with her one day as a further form of apology from her) only Mirajane knew the full extent of their relationship with one another, and if anyone else had their suspicions, they were either too polite or too smart to broach the topic when Cana was around. Or they were too dumb to notice anything at all in the first place.

Knowing her fellow guild mates, however, Cana was personally inclined to believe it was that lattermost option.

Of course, that hardly applied to Mirajane; the woman hadn't earned the title of "Demon" for nothing, after all, and having been around them for so many years, she had grown adept at reading and understanding the lot of them, sometimes more so than they themselves did. It was Mirajane, in fact, who had first brought up the idea that Cana felt more for Bacchus beyond what was dictated by the rules of social drinking and casual sex. When she thought about it while sipping her fourth vodka lemonade of the day (which was really little more than lemonade-flavored vodka — she was a woman who preferred her drinks strong, after all) Cana had come to the startling conclusion that the older woman was right, and the pleasant buzz Cana had been nursing for the last few hours abruptly disappeared as she cursed loudly.

Mirajane had merely smiled at her in a pleasant, knowing sort of way, and despite the warmth of her hotel room, Cana felt the gooseflesh on her arms raise as a shiver traveled down her spine at the memory; sometimes, Mirajane was downright _terrifying_.

It, her relationship — fling, activities, _whatever_ — with Bacchus had initially started out as something that was mutually understood to be strictly casual. They were both extremely busy, with little time for leisure beyond what free time between missions allowed, and even less time that could be devoted to a proper and committed relationship with someone else, but even so they were human, and as such prone to basic human needs and urges. That was why she hadn't moved away when Bacchus had leaned closer and pressed his lips against her own that night at the inn in Maple, where they had both found themselves in upon the successful completion of their individual missions, when the pair discovered themselves to be the last patrons at its bar, and why he, in turned, hardly protested when Cana had whispered, "My room, _now_," in his ear after their kisses had grown more heated and she'd settled herself comfortably, almost possessively, in his lap so that she could untie the piece of fabric that held back his dark hair. And after morning came and they'd gone at it again (as if whatever they'd done last night wasn't enough) Bacchus had grinned at her while helping to pick up the clothes that had been scattered haphazardly across the room in their haste the previous night.

"We should definitely do this again," he'd told her as he picked her top up from the floor and tossed it to her from across the room. "That was all kinds of wild."

With a smirk, Cana had thrown his pants at his face in response. "Give me a time and a place, and I'm in."

And she most certainly was.

Everything had been so _natural_ with Bacchus — and not just the drinking and the sex, either, though both really were excellent as well. The conversation had been easy, the companionship greatly appreciated, and if they happened to get dinner or go to the movie lacrima theaters together, it was assumed to be little more than another aspect of the nature of their relationship. And when Mirajane had first brought up the possibility that her friend cared more for the Palm Mage than she let on, and Cana realized that her feelings for Bacchus really had grown to something no longer pertinent to someone she only drank and fooled around with, she'd done the most obvious thing.

Cana had run away. She'd woken up at the break of dawn to find Bacchus's powerful arms wrapped around her waist gently and his chin settled comfortably in the crook of her neck, and when the thought occurred to her that she wouldn't mind waking up like this every day if Bacchus was the one holding her, she'd froze. And then something else occurred to her: neither she nor Bacchus had had a single drop of alcohol the night before, and they'd still slept together anyway. So, being the coward that she was, Cana had slipped out of his embrace, picking her things up from around their room at the inn and getting dressed as quietly as she was able before exiting; she didn't even leave him a note, though she did make sure to pay for their stay before she left. She could do that much, at least. Not that it did much to alleviate her guilt; a month had passed since then, and she hadn't seen nor contacted Bacchus in any way since then, hoping that the deliberate separation on her part would help her mind and her heart sort themselves out.

Naturally, it didn't work, and as the weeks passed, Cana had been troubled to discover that she hadn't just developed a silly little crush on the Palm Mage — she had honestly and truly fallen for him, and harder than she had for any person she'd been attracted to before.

Of course, Cana found a number of ways to justify her actions. After all, she was _Cana Alberona_: Fairy Tail's resident tank where alcohol was concerned, who used a confident and boisterous personality as a front to mask a seemingly infinite number of personal problems where commitments and her self-confidence were concerned. Daddy issues, too, but at least those had been on the mend as of late, ever since she first revealed her identity to Gildarts. In fact, Cana had thought all of her other flaws had slowly been getting better since then — she'd finally gotten over Macao, for one, though her seven-year-long disappearance had helped with that, managed to become one of Fairy Tail's top-ranked S-class mages, and became the first person since Mavis Vermillion to properly master Fairy Glitter without the aid of any outside force.

_I__'__d be an idiot if I thought I__'__d ever get a lucky break in romance. _

An idea occurred to Cana, then, and she sat up abruptly, her gaze concentrated on the bag sitting on the floor on the other side of the room that contained her cards — not just the ones she used for her magic, but her prized tarot cards. They'd been a gift from her late mother, and it had been through them that Cana had begun to develop and hone her prodigious abilities in Card Magic. But even before that, she'd learnt how to utilize those same cards to perform a reading through her own skill and intuition alone, and in the years since then, her cards had never been wrong. Perhaps, if she had enough time before she had to leave for the photo shoot, she could…?

Cana glanced at the clock on the nightstand and blanched. The reading, it seemed, would have to wait; even with the extra time she'd had thanks to the destruction of the coffee shop that had cut the interview short, the photo shoot was still scheduled for that afternoon she was still running late. She jumped off the bed, hurriedly grabbing a jacket and her bag before bolting out the door. Pausing only to make sure the door was properly locked and her room key was secure in her bag, Cana continued on, forcing herself to think of nothing but reaching the studio on time for the shoot, even if that meant she had to be sober for it.

_Mavis_, she hoped it would be worth it.

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**A/N:** My apologies for such a relatively "boring" chapter full of background information and such, but I guess it's a bit necessary in this case, if only to make the situation a bit more clear. That being said, the timeline of this fic is deliberately meant to be a bit unclear (though I personally see it taking place about a year or so after the GMG arc). The only "major" development, I think, is that Cana's managed to become a fully-fledged S-class mage by this point, and it shows, though she's still got some way to go regarding her take on relationships and commitments and the like. The poor dear.

The next chapter, I promise, won't be nearly as expository; simultaneously, however, it most likely won't be posted too soon, like the time span between these first two chapters (and for that, you have my apologies). Still, I think it's a good place, now, for readers to catch up and have a bit more understanding of the nuances of the situation, so. Yes. There you go!

Once again, thank you so much for reading, and any reviews or feedback anyone leaves is always greatly appreciated!


	3. Heart-to-Heart

_This fanwork contains references to the use of alcohol and to certain mature situations. Viewer discretion is advised._

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**Where the Wild Things Are  
****Chapter Three: Heart-to-Heart  
**

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Three weeks after she returned from Crocus, Cana found herself at the counter of Fairy Tail's bar with her fourth beer of the day, anxiously watching Mirajane as the older woman flipped through the pages of the magazine and looked at the pictures with a professionally critical eye. The article of the interview itself remained ignored; they'd long ago grown accustomed to the way Jason wrote, and Cana was not willing to talk about the apparent "coolly passionate and forbidden romance" between herself and Bacchus that had become the focus of his article. As long as their reputations as mages, as well as those of their respective guilds, remained intact, Cana hardly cared whether the rest of the world thought they were dating. It was hardly worth something to worry about.

At least, that's what Cana kept telling herself.

"You guys really do look good together, Cana." Mirajane nodded appreciatively at the photo spread in front of her. "It's not a surprise that Jason assumed you two were dating — if I didn't know any better, I probably would, too."

Cana glared at the older woman over her mug. "Except you _do_ know better." She shoved the mug forward, a silent demand for a refill. "I still haven't forgiven you, you know."

Mirajane looked at her friend pointedly, but took the mug from her all the same. "I also know that you enjoyed doing the photo shoot more than you'll ever admit." She gestured down at the glossy pages of the magazine. "You can deny it all you want, but that's definitely _not_ the face of someone who isn't enjoying what they're doing."

"It's complicated." Cana leaned forward and allowed herself to slump down onto the counter, eyes fixated on the worn wood before her as if she could will a new mug to materialize instantly before her.

"And who do you have to thank for that?"

The counter was suddenly very interesting, so much so that Cana found that she couldn't answer the question she'd been asked, and Cana found herself following the pattern of wood grains intently. She heard Mirajane sigh audibly, her frustration with entire situation obvious, but all the same she set another large mug of beer before Cana a few moments later, accompanied by a large bowl of hot soup and a plate of bread that was still slightly-steaming. It smelled delicious, and Cana winced when her stomach growled loudly in response.

"Just as I thought," Mirajane said smugly, and when Cana looked up from the table to frown at her, the Take-Over Mage's smile only grew. "You should be glad that I didn't tell Porlyusica — if she had her way, you'd be kept in the infirmary for a month." Her expression grew thoughtful. "Now that I think about, maybe I _should_ tell her after all. Erza, too."

"I hate you," Cana replied, but she reached forward and took a piece of bread nonetheless, dipping the end of it into the soup before placing it in her mouth. Sweet Mavis, it was _delicious_.

Mirajane smiled. "I love you, too."

Cana stopped mid-chew at the mention of the word. To her, love in a romantic context was a strange and alien concept that she didn't understand, nor was she certain that she wanted to. She certainly knew what it was like to love her friends, and while she enjoyed the love Gildarts had showered on her after the revelation of their relationship (even if it was trying at times) she'd still been blessed enough to love, and be loved in turn, by the family she found in Fairy Tail and its members ever since she was a little girl. But a love that went deeper than that? It was difficult to fathom, especially where her own love life was concerned.

Her parents had loved one another dearly. The way Bisca and Alzack looked at one another with such pure adoration was obvious to even the most casual observer. Even Juvia, for all her enthusiasm and possessiveness for anything and everything that concerned her precious Gray-sama, clearly cared for the Ice-Make Mage on a very deep level, and despite his apparent frustration and numerous attempts to appear nonchalant and aloof about the whole thing, Gray returned her feelings as well, in his own way. But for Cana to feel that way about someone was scary enough; the possibility that someone could in turn feel that way about her in turn was downright _terrifying_.

"This sucks," Cana muttered, ripping another piece of bread in frustration and shoving one large half into her mouth. "It's not even like we're dating, and I'm already thinking about love — what the hell is wrong with me?" She swallowed thickly and brought her mug to her lips, draining it entirely in one go.

Ever mindful of any situation at hand, Mirajane had made sure to fill another mug with thick, dark beer, and she set it in front of Cana with one hand while taking the newly-emptied mug with the other. "Nothing's wrong with you — it's not like anything else happened in Crocus, right?" At that, Cana bit her lip and looked away from Mirajane guiltily, and the older woman gasped. "You _didn__'__t_!"

It took Cana a few seconds to figure out the best way to respond. "After the photo shoot, we decided to get a couple of drinks together. I made sure to keep my distance, and so did he, so I thought we'd be alright. Obviously, we weren't." She closed her eyes in embarrassment, buried her face in her hands. "I screwed up."

"I'll say." Mirajane had never been one to sugarcoat her words when it came to such things. "Did Bacchus say anything?"

Cana shrugged. "Not really. He was already gone when I woke up." At that, Mirajane looked at her curiously, one delicate eyebrow arched in deliberate interest. Cana was confused. "What?"

The older woman merely shrugged. "I was just wondering something," she began slowly, "did it ever occur to you that you might have hurt Bacchus?"

Well, she certainly hadn't been expecting _that_. "Hurt that overgrown puppy dog?" she spluttered. "He's a pervert, Mira, a lech. Sure, he's got a sense of honor, I'll give him that, even if it is his own twisted brand, and he's definitely a good person, underneath all the muscles, but — !"

Now it was Mirajane's turn to glare, and Cana froze; she was familiar enough with the expression to know that nothing would bode well for her if Mirajane didn't speak her mind. "Cana, you two were together — don't give me that look, I know you thought the exact same thing — for three months. _Three entire months_." Her glare grew more intense, and Cana was beginning to wish she hadn't started drinking that last beer. "You know as well as I do that most 'casual' relationships don't even last three _weeks_." She held up a finger. "One."

"M-mira, _please_…"

"_Two_," Mirajane continued as she put up another finger, her voice gradually growing louder in volume, "you ran away without even saying goodbye. You didn't even leave him a _note_."

Cana swallowed nervously, painfully aware of the attention Mirajane was attracting to them. "But I paid for our room and board, at least."

A loud _smack_ met her ears as Mirajane slapped her hands on the counter in frustration, and Cana was fairly certain she'd heard the wood splinter, as well. "_That doesn__'__t help_!" the older woman was screaming, now, and Cana briefly wondered if she'd end up transforming into her Satan Soul form by the end of the discussion — in which case she'd need to make sure someone found her will before it was too late. "You leave without saying goodbye, and then you refuse to see or contact him for an entire month, even when you weren't on a mission." Her expression grew pained. "I know he tried writing you, but it's not just that — do you know how many times he stopped by the guild between his own missions just to see you? Did you know that he and Gajeel met up on a mission right before the interview, and all Bacchus would talk about was you?"

"He seemed fine when I saw him in Crocus," Cana offered meekly, wishing that someone in the guild would start a brawl soon, and the rest of them would be too distracted by the fight to even care about her discussion with Mirajane. Unfortunately for her, an angry and untransformed Mirajane was terrifying enough to prevent anyone from starting something as relatively trivial as another guild-wide scuffle.

Mirajane closed her eyes, then, and inhaled deeply. For a moment, Cana was certain that her friend would be utilizing her most powerful Take-Over form within seconds, but let out a shaky breath of relief she hadn't realized she'd been holding when Mirajane exhaled slowly and opened her eyes, noticeably calmer than she'd been seconds ago. "Because he did it for _you_." She shrugged. "I won't pretend to be an expert about things like this, but I know that whatever it was the two of you had, you definitely thought it was special, and I think it's safe to say that Bacchus did, too." Then she fixed Cana with another frosty glare. "And then _you_ had to get cold feet and mess it up the moment you could have had a 'happily ever after'!"

"Well, thanks for making me feel like even more of a horrible person," Cana replied sullenly. The argument between the two women seemingly over, and the threat of a fight seemingly gone, the guild had gone back to sense of relative normalcy. Cana ignored it, and instead fiddled around with her soup spoon, not willing to admit that everything Mirajane had just said hit much closer to home than she'd like to admit. "What do I, now?"

"First, you're going to finish your food. I meant it when I said I'd tell Porlyusica; you've lost too much weight recently." And then Mirajane shrugged. Somewhere on the main floor of the guild, the two heard the familiar sounds of yet another brawl beginning over some mundane matter or the other. They ignored it. "After that, you're going to fix this. I don't know how you'll do it, or even what you're going to do, but you were the one who got yourself into this situation, so you're going to be the one to make it better."

_Right_, Cana thought as a the sound of wood splintering, followed by surprised yelp of pain, met her ears. _Easier said than done._ "Have you ever thought of trading in your modeling career with _Sorcerer Weekly_ to be a life coach and inspirational writer for them instead? You could have your own column and everything."

Mirajane shrugged and expertly dodged the corner of a table that came flying at her from the fight growing in the center of the guild. "I don't know. I think I'm to used to the guild — a job like that would get boring really fast, don't you think?"

"You're right," Cana said with a soft chuckle. "I'll drink to that!" And she did, despite the strange combination of fear and guilt and apprehension that was beginning to pool in her belly, until someone was stupid enough to punch her squarely between the shoulder blades, causing Cana to spill her drink all down her front, which naturally warranted Cana to return the favor with a swift kick of her own to someone else's neck. She continued her assault of anyone stupid enough to come near her, content to drunkenly bash heads together — literally — until she fell asleep at the bar when the fight slowed to a stop, though Bacchus and their current situation was never far from her mind.

Still, she thought tiredly as she pillowed her head on her arms and drifted off to sleep, that was something sober Cana would have to worry about later.

* * *

**A/N:** So, yeah. I ended up changing the title of the fic, but I suppose that hardly matters, at this point. Anyway, we get a bit more backstory, and this time with the added bonus of plot as well (with maybe a hint of character development, too, if you squint hard enough). In other news, Mirajane is unexpectedly fun to write, as is a mopey and frustrated Cana, as well as the banter that occurs between the two. Also, I'm really enjoying writing a (relatively) more light-hearted and humorous multichaptered piece more than I thought I would, which is also a plus. Yay.

As always, reviews and feedback are always appreciated — thank you to everyone who has reviewed thus far, as well as those who have favorited and are following this piece. It really does mean a lot to me!


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